Her Heart, His Prey Ch. 02

I shifted uncomfortably. David's hand was still on my forehead and one of his hands gripping my non-broken arm. As soon as I had spoken, the entire room went dead silent. "David what the hell is going on?" I hissed, trying not to return any of the stares I received from the exasperated weres.

"You are here to save my son," a commanding voice spoke up, and as if on cue, David moved away from me. I glanced around only to rest my eyes on possibly the largest man I had ever seen before in my life. I tried not to gawk as I took in his brawny shoulders and six and a half foot frame, incredibly well-muscled and completely noticeable even through the dress shirt and pants he wore. He had dark hair and familiar eyes that seemed as if they could hear your every thought—which wouldn't surprise me by now. I felt trapped by his power and I clamped my mouth shut, not sure if I could say anything if I wanted to. He walked towards me until he stood merely a few feet away.

His presence was imposing and I struggled to make my mouth form words. "What are you talking about?" I asked hesitantly, astonished that my voice didn't quaver.

"My son. He risked his life saving yours, and now you have to do the same for him." His voice was stern and I could see why he was an Alpha. He exuded confidence and authority.

"The hell I-!" I broke off. His son; he was my savior in the alley, the one who had saved me from the vampire. "What?" I finished lamely. I was starting to get a headache and I felt more confused than ever as I stared at the overly large wolf-man.

I noticed a few glares in my direction when I had begun to argue, but they quickly softened back into their previous composures as they realized I was merely confused. The Alpha gazed down at me, his eyes warm, but his mouth set in a frown at my outburst. "He needs your help, Marlow." He knelt in front of me placing a warm hand on my knee. "We don't have much time to explain, but I promise you that no harm will befall you."

"You can promise that?" I asked, eyebrows raised.

"I can," he stated, completely certain of himself. "We will release you upon completion of your service." I noted a few incredulous looks from some of the other weres in the room.

He saved your life, a voice in my head whispered. Do it! I clenched my hand around my other knee, trying to decide what I should do. I owed him, yes, but at what cost would this be to me? I met David's pleading eyes, him urging me to refuse. I made up my mind then.

"I'll do it," I murmured. The Alpha smiled victoriously. Taking my good hand in his, he helped me to my feet and led me out of the room and down a darkened hall.

"Here's what you need to know..."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Twenty minutes later, I was thrust into an isolated room, tripping over my feet so that I ended up falling to my knees in front of a small, low-to-the-ground bed. On top of that bed was a sight that caused me to gasp.

It was the guy from the club: the arrogant yet appealing one, the one who had talked to me. I started to tremble. What did all of this mean? The weres had told me so much yet so little at the same time. Taking a tentative step forward, I scrutinized him.

For lack of a better word, he looked horrible. His chest was bare only to be covered by thick bandages that still had blood seeping through, the dark crimson color sickening. This is your fault, a voice in my head whispered. I bit my lip. His expression was pained, his dark hair drenched with sweat as he fought to control the agony he felt even in his unconscious. 'Cassian,' the voice urged, remembering a few of the details told to me by the Alpha, 'his name is Cassian. Call him that.' Moving so that I was kneeling by the edge of the mattress, I reached out hesitantly towards him. My fingers brushed the rough bandages, blood staining my fingertips as I pulled back.

I wondered what on earth the vampire had done to him that he was in such critical condition. Could he die from his injury?

'Your blood is the key,' the Alpha's voice in my head reminded me. I grimaced.

A battle was ensuing inside of me then. They said he needed my blood and had thrown me in here without a single explanation as to what that meant among other things. I should be trying to escape, not sitting here seeing if he was going to be okay.

'Your fault, your fault,' the voice in my head kept saying. I felt tears begin to form in my eyes as I tried to figure out what to do.

When I shifted my gaze back to his face, I started. His eyes were open, glowing a brilliant gold, and staring directly at me. A low growl formed in his throat, and I froze. We stayed like that for the longest time, just looking at each other.

Panic erupted inside of me and I lurched backwards. At the same time, his hand shot out, faster than I could escape, and yanked me down onto the mattress, pinning me there. I lay awkwardly on my side, breathing heavily. I heard him whimper softly as he moved, pressing his bandaged chest into my side, turning me slightly so that I was facing him. He was over top of me, and I couldn't disguise the panicked look in my eyes.

His blazing xanthic eyes were as inescapable as they were inhuman. I couldn't take my eyes off of them, and I was partially sure that was because he was using his weird lupine super-powers on me. A panicked noise emanated from my chest and he reached up to cup my face, apparently trying to soothe me. I stiffened and he leaned his head down to my neck.

He inhaled deeply. I still couldn't bring myself to say anything, so I struggled to move instead. Even injured he was immensely more powerful than me, and he gripped my arms harder.

He pulled away. I exhaled in relief. If that was all he was going to do, then...

As soon as the thought came to my mind he lunged forward with a growl. I couldn't even scream as he bit down hard onto the juncture between my shoulder and my neck. Immeasurable pain flooded my nerves for a moment and then suddenly I was out cold.

In the dream I was falling. Down, down, a cry emanated from my throat. And then arms caught me. I luxuriated in the soft grass as I was placed upon it, and I gazed up into the eyes of a silver wolf. It almost seemed to smile at me as it stood over me. I gazed at it in awe.

And in a burst of moonlight, it was suddenly a man. His back was to the moon and I wasn't able to see his face. He moved forward so that he was lying down next to me. I realized then that I was naked, my body exposed to the stars, the moon, but most importantly to him, whoever he was. I wondered why I wasn't afraid of him in my dream.

Shadows covered his face and I strained to make out any of his features. I didn't realize I had moved closer until I was an inch away from his face. There was a moment's pause in which neither of us moved, and I thought I could make out the lines of his face when suddenly he bent forward, crushing his lips against mine with a groan.

The kiss was searing, yet tender and I felt his warm hands glide along my body. When they reached my breasts he teased my nipples, causing me to moan into his mouth with pleasure. He moved his head down, a grumble of soft laughter rippling through his chest as he began pressing sensual kisses along my jaw and further down on my neck as he continued to play with my breasts. I moaned as he nipped at my neck and I reached down to pull his head back up. I wanted, no, I needed to see his face. I needed to know who he was.

His hands began to glide further down and I shivered under his knowing touch. He allowed me to guide his head back up so that he was looking at me as his fingertips brushed my core.

Gold, blazing gold eyes, stared back at me in lust. Werewolf, the voice in my head screeched. The pleasure instantly forgotten, I opened my mouth to scream. He vanished, winking out of existence, leaving me stranded with the moon as my only companion.

When I finally came to, I was sweltering. Warmth was surrounding me, suffocating me. I struggled against my captor, trying to escape the heat that was so contrary to the coolness of the moon. All memory of the dream began to evade me and I strived to remember how I had ended up like this, in a cupboard of a room with only a small bed and a door occupying it along with whatever held me trapped.

Suddenly I was released, and I flashed out of the grip of whoever had been holding me. I dove off of the mattress and into the wall across from it in the small room. I was panting, terror and relief coursing through me as I was freed only to gaze upon my captor.

I looked up to see Cassian sitting propped up on his elbow. He was staring at me in confusion. "Why are you...?" he trailed off as he stared at me, confusion, anger, and horror crossing his face all at once. I could see that the wounds on his chest had stopped bleeding and he was seemingly almost healed, infinitely better than before. I tried not to notice how delicious he looked, his dark hair falling partially into his eyes as his muscled arm held himself off of the bed. I thought back to how tightly those arms had held me.

'Hold up,' I thought to myself, 'stop right there.'

Rising slowly to his feet, he strode to where I was curled up against the wall, pulling the bandages off of his chest as he went. I flinched away from him when he knelt in front me, just like his father had before. He ignored my discomfort and reached up to cup my chin in his hand, lifting it up. I made a pained noise as he did, my neck flaring in agony. I raised my good hand to cover it, but he captured it with a large one of his own.

As he leaned forward, terror kept me frozen in place. My instinct to flee was battling with my knowledge that there was absolutely no way out of here. I felt his nose graze my neck and a broken gasp came from my chest. He pulled back, looking at me curiously. "What happened? Who did this to you?" he asked gruffly. His face was ruggedly handsome, and a small beard forming on his face as he most likely hadn't shaved in days.

I opened my mouth to speak, but winced as every movement wrought pain on my neck. I felt his fingertips brush the wound. "Who hurt you, love?" he asked softly.

I blinked. I hadn't been treated so tenderly since David and I had broken it off—or rather since he cheated on me. I felt tears form in my eyes and I tried to pry myself away from him. His shadowy eyes met my distressed ones and his face fell. "Did I do this to you?" he murmured. He looked pained, but I knew not to trust werewolves. They moved on quickly. They had overactive emotions that ran rampant at times. What David had felt for me had probably never been love. I was destined to a life as an old cat lady, made better only by the fact that I was allergic to cats.

Not that I'm thinking positively or anything.

I didn't meet his eyes, instead I chose to stare at the wall to my left, my neck smarting as he continued to examine the bite.

Moving slowly, trying not to frighten me, he leaned in again. I tensed as his nose brushed against my neck again, but this time he did something I didn't expect. I started as I felt his tongue scrape against the wound on my neck. I waited for the pain to explode from the injury, but instead I shuddered at the relief from the sting. It washed over me, and I shut my eyes, reveling in it as it ran, tingling, through my body. My neck was healing, I could feel it, and it was both amazing and terrifying knowing they had such powers.

Pulling away, he nuzzled my neck softly for a moment. I felt like a statue. I could see, hear, even feel everything, but I felt like I couldn't move. I felt stuck, and all because of him, and the strange power he held over me.

I lingered like that, lost in thought, and somewhere in the back of my mind I could feel the hand brushing along my hair and my jaw. Someone was talking to me...

"Love?" the werewolf asked, his voice still soft.

"Don't call me that," I replied sharply before I had a chance to think. I no longer felt any pain from the injury to my neck, and my first words to him were filled with venom.

He smirked at me. "Well since I don't have any other name for you, I figured it fit."

"My name is Marlow..." I trailed off, trying not to roll my eyes at his smartass response. "How long do I have to stay here?" I wanted out, I wanted out now, before I did something stupid. Or someone tried to kill me again.

His eyes narrowed in confusion and he was about to respond when the door to the room finally opened. Light streamed in behind the figure of someone who was clearly Cassian's mother, and I gazed stonily at her. She glanced from me to her son, her face devoid of expression. She had the same dark hair as Cassian and his father, but her eyes were a light brown, almost caramel colored.

I felt panic for a moment, thinking that they weren't going to let me go. "Cassian, a word please," she ordered, before turning to leave the minuscule room.

I unfroze in that moment, rising quickly to my feet. "I have done as you have asked," I gasped out. "Our deal is over." I didn't glace at Cassian, but I could feel his eyes on me as I spoke.

His mother gazed over her shoulder at me, her eyes saddening slightly at my desperation. "I fear, my dear, that our deal is far from being over." Cassian swiftly followed behind his mother, giving me a lingering look with his smoldering eyes. I didn't realize how much space he took up until he had stood up, and I tried not to gawk. When the door began to close behind him I ran at it, slamming my fist against it when it banged shut, the lock clicking into place.

"Dammit!" I shouted. Panic, fear, and despair all crept up on me. I sank to the floor with a quiet sob. What had I done to deserve this? What had I done that reserved me to this captured fate, forever surrounded by the supernaturals I hated and the man who broke my heart?

Why did I feel so strange about this man I scarcely even knew? I bit my lip, urging myself to not even consider the possibilities.

You saved his life, he's grateful. Get over it, the cynical voice in my head harped. I sighed. No tears fell as I sat there, cross-legged in front of the door that had been so unceremoniously slammed in my face. 'Ungrateful wolves,' I grumped, 'always screwing up your life.'

I waited there for what felt like hours, just sitting. I wanted my old life back. I wanted my life without supernatural crazies in it. I wanted no boy drama, and I wanted my family back. Of everything, my sister's rejection of me probably hurt the worst. Even worse than my parents untimely...

I took a deep breath, pushing the thoughts out of my head. Biting my lip, I finally gave up on the notion that someone was going to come save me. Avoiding the bed that had a highly defined blood stain on it from where he had bitten me, I managed to haul myself over into the corner of the tiny room, curling into a ball on the cold floor.

This time I was plagued by nightmares of the strange wolf-men who held me captive. There were no erotic dreams about kindly wolves or the moon above me. They held me isolated from the world forever, locked in tiny rooms. They laughed. They were amused at my human feelings. My pain.

When I awoke, I could feel arms encircling me yet again. My fear receded to a point and a fury boiled deep within me. "Get. The. Fuck. Off of me!" I shrieked. The arms around me immediately loosened and I rolled forward...

...right off the bed. I landed with a thud, miraculously avoiding my broken arm. "Ow," I mumbled. From somewhere above me I could hear muffled laughter.

I blinked, tears beginning to form in my eyes. I was in a new room now, clearly, even though I could only see the underside of the large mahogany bed. I felt a hand on my shoulder, but I refused to turn my head and look at him. I knew it was him, Cassian, even without looking.

Giving a cross sigh, he brushed his hand along my shoulder. 'You can't hide from me, Marlow.' His voice in my head sent shivers down my spine. I wasn't sure if they were good or bad shivers, but I only knew I had to reject any feeling for him from my mind or else I was never getting out of here.

'I don't like it when people force themselves into my head,' I replied icily.

I could sense his surprise as it took him a moment to continue. 'That would imply people have been in your head before, love, and I thought you were human.' I snorted from where I was lying on the floor. 'You laugh, but I'm the one up here on the comfy bed while you're down there on the cold floor.'

"It's perfectly fine down here," I replied out loud, my head aching too much to continue communicating by thought.

Arms wrapped around my waist and yanked me into the air. "Hey!" I cried out, twisting against the arms that were settling me back on the bed. He didn't say anything for a moment, just held me there. I could make out the refined furnishing of the room, all modern and all way more than I could ever afford. "I know that weres like to be near to people and everything, but I'm really not much of a snuggler," I griped, shoving one elbow back into his chest.

I felt him growl in response. I heaved a sigh and gripped one of his arms that encircled my waist. I tried pulling at it, trying to push it away, I even debated biting him, but I got the feeling he would like that. "No," he grumbled into my ear. "Marlow, stop moving, you're going to hurt yourself."

"Then let me go," I suggested.

"No," he grumbled again.

I grew irritated, partially because he refused to release me. The other part was irritated because I had begun to like that he was holding me. "You know, I get that you're the Alpha's son or whatever, and you don't like taking orders, but when I told you I didn't want to dance with you at the club I was implying that you and your pack of wolves shouldn't come near me at all. Let alone kidnap me!"

"I'm aware of the circumstances that brought you here now, but believe me if I had had anything to say about it, you wouldn't be here right now," he declared. I could feel his breath against the side of my neck. I wanted desperately to be facing him, so that he could see how pissed I was at him. "Even though I am immeasurably glad you are now."

His words made me froze. David had told me all about weres, and I had learned a thing or two from my parents as well. Their feelings ran to extremes, especially after being hurt as badly as he was. What he felt towards me was an intense gratitude, nothing more. "You're glad because I saved your life," I told him sharply.

A low rumble in his chest caused me to tense for his next words. "You are wrong, ocella. I am glad because I found you. I am glad because you are mine."